“The whole experience has been rewarding, especially recognizing the things we are doing right already, and focusing on ways to make them lasting relationship tools.”

"I learned something new about my wife's life (we have been together for 26 years!)

“We worked through a past argument, and a gridlocked issue became a semi-solvable issue.”

“We liked reviewing the fondness and admiration because that’s something we need to emphasize more in our relationship. Learning that we have detailed love maps to rely on.”

“We really enjoyed the Love Map and the Opportunity cards – we felt the exercise highlighted the strengths in our relationship.”

“My partner and I had fun and enjoyed each other. A very cool day. I was able to recognize my own destructive behavior. I realized that negativity is not protective – that it’s a self-fulfilling philosophy and I should be calmer and have more faith.”

“Overall, this was a fantastic workshop from the perspective of both a clinician and a participant. We left feeling renewed and closer.”

“The entire presentation was positive.”

“A clear explanation and delivery of the Sound Relationship House. Plenty of humor combined with earnest effort to convey concepts. Well done.”

“The presenters are very personable, knowledgeable and down to earth. The outdoor setting on a beautiful day.”

“Working through real conflict was an extraordinary experience for us. Within the span of 15 minutes we went right into our bad habits and then recovered and repaired with the aid of the workshop tools and advice.”

“Skill #4 about understanding your partner’s dreams under a perpetual problem was the highlight. I grasped a better understanding of my partner’s views during this exercise.”

“I just wanted to let you know how much we appreciated the workshop this past weekend. We really enjoyed ourselves and learned a lot. It was such a positive jolt to our relationship that we truly needed. We had tried couples counseling, but hadn't gotten what we needed from it. I particularly appreciate the concrete skills and tools that were taught. I wanted to share a little story. The ritual we chose to implement was to give appreciations each evening as part of our son's bedtime routine (he's almost 3). Sunday night after we got home, we began thanking each other for little things we'd done. We hadn't explained it to our son or called attention to what we were doing. As he watched us doing it, he piped in with his own, "Thank you Daddy for a nice bath and thank you Mommy for reading my books." I was blown away at how effective it was to role-model this for him and how easily he joined in.”

“My partner and I were able to create a plan around a conflict we’ve repeatedly argued over for 10 years!”

“The whole day was rewarding. Learning solutions and steps to take toward positive conflict resolution techniques was really helpful.”

“I really liked the time to work on issues together as a couple. The role-plays were also helpful to use as an example throughout.”

"A positive highlight was being able to talk about conflict without fighting - it was scary and made me anxious - but it was really helpful!"

“Working thru exercises knowing that 1:1 coaching was available really made a difference.”

“Highlights were the Aftermath of a Fight exercise and finding the underlying dream in a gridlocked problem.”

“I felt we covered so much territory in a very clear concise way and the exercises were truly impactful!”

“I enjoyed getting to understand my husband’s point of view while we learned to process a regrettable incident.”

“That there are actually tools we can use to reduce our negative perspective.”

"Having my conflicts and feelings validated and understood was very positive for me, even though expressing my hurt and not trying to blame him 100% and taking responsibility for my part was difficult."

“The best part of the workshop was the section on fondness and admiration. I feel those things for my wife but don’t always tell her.”

“The positive highlights were the practical exercises – It gave us time to talk about the different phases. It was also nice to know that for the most part we were doings positive in our relationship. It was all helpful.”

“The activities and focus as a couple and not as a group was great. The weather was planned perfect!”

“I appreciate the package and information. The space is great and the format of time away to discuss each exercise was beneficial...

Thinking about Relationship Counseling, a Marriage Counselor or Couples Therapy? These testimonials for the Weekend Couples and Marriage Workshops and Retreat, designed by Drs. John and Julie Gottman, are offered in the Northern California - SF Bay Area. They are presented by Lisa Lund, CRC, MFT and Bob Navarra, Psy.D, MFT

Outside of these regions, through-out California and out of state, the Couples Workshop and Retreat serves the Central Valley of California including the cities of Redding, Sacramento, Stockton, Modesto, Fresno, and Bakersfield. Often couples arriving from out of state including Portland, Oregon; Las Vegas or Reno, Nevada; Phoenix or Tucson, Arizona; Salt Lake City, Utah; Boise, Idaho; Denver, Colorado; or Albuquerque, New Mexico add a couple extra days to their stay so that they can enjoy the Golden Gate National Recreational Area - GGNRA, Muir Woods, Mount Tamalpais, as well as Northern California's Wine Country.